Daylight Savings Time (DST) brings many benefits, like longer evenings in the summer to enjoy outdoor activities and brighter weekend mornings. However, when it comes to an end in November and the clocks “fall back” an hour, the time shift disrupts many routines, especially for children. And as a parent, we no longer get to enjoy “an extra hour of sleep.” Instead, we are flipping pancakes through weary eyes at 5:00 AM instead of 6:00 AM because babies and toddlers have no chill during DST. The transition can be tricky for children and adults alike and can disrupt everyone’s sleep patterns, leading to cranky mornings and restless nights.
Thankfully, with these proactive tips, you can help your child adjust to the time change more smoothly. We’ll explore different ways you can prepare your child’s sleep schedule for the time change, ensuring a peaceful transition.
1. Optimize the Sleep Environment
Before we talk schedule shifts, it is critical that you create a sleep-conducive environment to ensure that your child sleeps well during the time transition. Since the end of Daylight Savings Time means the mornings will be lighter and evening will be darker, we need to make adjustments accordingly.
Always use blackout curtains, especially for children under the age of five years old. When the sun is rising at 5:55 AM, and your little one has logged a solid 10 hours of sleep, it will be hard for them to continue to transition through their lighter sleep cycles if they see sunlight peering through their window. When our brain perceives light, it signals to the body that it is time to be awake. With the time shift, this will happen at a less-desirable hour and a dark room can help combat this adjustment.
Continue to use your white noise machine in order to drown out household noises that may be distracting for your children during the time change. White noise helps to recreate the slower brain waves we see most commonly during deep NREM sleep and can help children stay asleep in the early morning hours.
2. Establish a Consistent Bedtime Routine
A consistent bedtime routine helps signal to your child that it is time to sleep, even when their body may not feel ready due to the time change. By incorporating calming activities into this routine and using the same steps, you can help your child feel confident in the expectation that it is time to go to bed.
Some activities that help to calm the body and cue that it is time to sleep are: warm baths, reading books, breathing or yoga exercises (great for busy toddlers!) or singing a lullaby with the lights low. Avoid stimulating activities and cut off screen time at least one hour before bedtime in order to help the body begin to produce more melatonin at the appropriate hour. Bluelight from TVs, phones and tablets can interfere with melatonin production, making it harder for children to feel sleepy at the appropriate time.


3. Prioritize Sleep Hygiene
If you have a strong sleeper and your child exhibits strong sleep skills, this transition will be easier for their body to make. If you are struggling with sleep, and your child is not able to fall asleep independently or is up frequently throughout the night for reasons other than nutritionally-necessary night feedings, they likely have a larger sleep debt and may struggle to make a smooth transition through the time change.
This is a great time to work on independent sleep skills and start encouraging longer stretches of sleep at night. Sleep training usually takes about one to two weeks (most of the time, parents see significant improvement within the first few days of implementation). For more information about sleep training your baby, toddler or preschooler, check out last month’s blog article.
Sleep is critical to the growth and development of our children, and when you are able to make it a priority in your home, changes such as DST, teething and sickness are much easier to manage.
4. Gradually Shift Naps, Meals and Bedtime
If you like to prepare your family ahead of time, gradually shifting your child’s sleep schedule during the week leading up to DST can prevent the abrupt impact of the time “falling back.”
On the Saturday before the time change, begin shifting your child’s entire schedule 15 minutes later every two days. For example, if they take their first nap at 9:00 AM, offer it at 9:15 AM on Saturday and Sunday, 9:30 AM on Monday and Tuesday, 9:45 AM on Wednesday and Thursday and 10:00 AM on Friday and Saturday. When the time shifts back one hour on Sunday, they will be adjusted to taking a nap at 9:00 AM on the clock (even though their body thinks it is 10:00 AM).
Sleep is closely tied to other daily activities, such as meals and naps. Adjusting these times alongside their naps and bedtime can help align your child’s internal circadian rhythm with the new times. Move mealtimes gradually, in the same direction as nap times. This will help their body understand when to expect food and when to expect rest.
This method is much easier to do if you are following a biological sleep schedule (which I recommend over using wake windows after the age of four months).


5. Try the Rip-The-Bandaid-Off Method
The majority of my practice helps parents make smooth and gradual transitions through sleep challenges. The one exception is Daylight Savings Time. While the gradual method described in the section above can be effective, there are many variables that we are unable to control, leading to an entire week of frustration around sleep. I prefer to coach my families to just “begin as you mean to go” on the first day after Daylight Savings Time ends.
On Sunday, your child will likely wake up one hour earlier than their normal wake time. The most efficient way for their body to adjust is to lock in their usual nap time prior to the time change to push them to stay awake until that time.
For example, your toddler usually wakes up at 6:30 AM and takes a nap starting at 12:00 PM prior to the time change. On Sunday, they will likely wake up at 5:30 AM. However, I want you to push them to stay awake until their nap at 12:00 PM on the clock after the change. This will feel like 1:00 PM in their body, so be prepared for an extra-fussy child. This will allow them to adjust to the new hours quickly, and if they have strong sleep skills, one hour will not affect them too greatly.
The same idea applies to bedtime: keep them awake until their typical bedtime, even though their body will feel as though it is one hour later. On Monday morning, if they wake up earlier than your desired wake time, stay out as long as possible to signal them it is still time to rest and take them out of their crib/room at 6:30 AM.
6. Use Natural Light to Your Advantage
Light exposure is one of the most powerful tools for regulating the body’s circadian rhythm, which controls the sleep-wake cycle. During the Daylight Savings Time transition, this can be used to your advantage.
Expose your child to morning light at the desired wake time. If they wake up early, try to keep the lights off or dim, or if they are agreeable, allow them space to hang out in their crib/room until closer to the desired wake time. Then expose them to morning light at your usual wake-up hour. When you are pushing them to stay awake slightly later for naps, take them outside to soak in the sun and natural light, which will help shift melatonin production. In the evening, keep the lights on until it is time to go to bed, completing the routine with low or dim lighting.
This creates a contrast that mimics the natural rhythm of day and night, helping to prompt sleepiness at the appropriate time.


7. Be Patient and Flexible
Even with careful planning, some children may take longer to adjust to the new time than others. Each child’s sleep needs and internal clock can differ, so it’s important to remain patient and flexible during this transition.
It’s normal for children to experience some sleep disruptions during the first few days or even weeks after the time change. Be prepared for potential early wake-ups or difficulty falling asleep at the new bedtime.
If your child is struggling with the new sleep schedule, you can tweak the approach as needed. For example, if they’re waking up too early, resist the temptation to let them sleep in too late, as this could throw off their new schedule. Instead, use naps or an earlier bedtime to help them catch up on missed sleep.
Researchers say that it takes the body one day to adjust for every one hour of a time change. I find that most children need about two to seven days before they establish a new schedule, so give your entire family some grace for the week after Daylight Savings Time ends.
Conclusion
While the end of Daylight Savings Time can be disruptive to sleep schedules, with careful preparation, you can help your child transition smoothly. By gradually shifting bedtime, creating a sleep-friendly environment and maintaining consistent routines, you’ll set your child up for restful nights and happy, energetic days.
Remember, every child is different, and some may take longer to adjust than others. Be patient (with your child and yourself), stay flexible and prioritize good sleep hygiene to help your child adapt to the time change with as little stress as possible.
By taking proactive steps and paying attention to your child’s unique needs, you can make the transition to the end of Daylight Savings Time a peaceful and positive experience for your entire family.
Check out more posts from Certified Pediatric Sleep Expert Sarah Bossio here!